A Great Night!

 I should have totally brought my camera... iPhones are fantastic but in low light... not the greatest for quick shots. However, this is what our night looked like. Good times were had by all!

Last night Tim and I had babysitters (in the form of Tim's parents) and hopped on the motorbike (it's been ages since we were able to ride that thing together since we usually have kids with us. However, last night, in all that heat we were able to get on ride through the night air to our destination of Bay and King (area) for a FANTASTIC meal with friends at Rodney's on Bay. It's an Oyster bar (and if you know me you know I don't really do seafood) but with an option for some turf rather than surf I was able to partake in the amazing fare! What a meal!

However, the best part of the night?! Being with good friends, enjoying laughter, catch up time and just simply.... a night with NO kids! What a gift! On the way out of the restaurant Tim and I tried to think back to the last time we were able to go out with friends and enjoy a night in the city with friends. We thought and thought... and what we came up with? Josh was a baby!! He was a tiny little person who was still young enough to sleep through a meal and allow us time to enjoy friends in an adult restaurant!  Normally, when we have a sitter it's for an event, or it's for some precious 'marriage' time. What we realized last night was how much we love just being able to enjoy time with friends, outside of our home.

It's funny how kids take over your life and the simple things like going out with people becomes a rare treat. It made me wonder why as parents we seem to just not take time for ourselves. Do we as parents not need to refresh? Do we not need time to just be individuals? Babysitting is certainly part of it I guess... (This will date me but I don't care) when I was a kid, of babysitting age, I used to earn 2 bucks an hour! One family that had five kids used to give me three bucks an hour and I used to LOVE it when they asked me to watch their kids for them because it meant more cash! Now, the price of babysitting is 10 - 15 bucks an hour! Talk about inflation! With our kids having so many health issues we find that a normal teenager just isn't going to cut it, so then we have the added issue of finding people that are older. The result. We wait until our parents can take the kids, or one of our friends. So, when those times come we become selfish about what we do with that precious 'kid free' time and often make it a date.

I think the tides of change are coming. Last night gave me a taste for the fun that can be had with a group of like minded people. The gift of laughter, companionship, community has renewed my extroverted soul and revived my lagging spirits.

So, for the parents out there. Make a date with friends. Suck up the sitting costs, or ask for help, and give up a date night. There is nothing more wonderful than being with the spouse you love, and enjoying them enjoy their friends.